Saturday, December 11, 2010

First, I don't remember a former President taking the podium answering questions for the current President, while the current President is in a fight for a bill to be passed.

Yes, we call former Presidents to swing bats (due to popularity) during campaign swings, but to have a former President answer questions (which I say he did mighty well) to the White House Press Corps while the current President is in a current fight he is having?

I am sorry, that I have not witnessed.

Look, Bill Clinton is loved and hated within the Democratic Party. We understand his strengths and weaknesses. I am sure that some of the legislation (which Obama is now dealing with due to bills passed during the Clinton tenure) that Bill Clinton passed, he wish could take it back. Like, NAFTA, which has had a direct affect of jobs for the middle class in this country. Sure, he would probably want to take that back.

The reality is this. It was a nice picture, mini presser but Bill Clinton is not the President of the United States, Barack Obama is.

My husband said this, "...why is Bill Clinton answering questions to the current tax crisis/debate and Barack Obama is not? I think this makes Obama look weak. And this is 2010 and not 1994."

I thought about that and my husband was right. This is not 1994. Why? First off, the cable networks and cable chatter was not off the chain as it is now. The internet was not instant news as it is now, which many Americans, NOW get their information. And the big key my husband stated, "...the recession Clinton was in is different than what is going on now."

Clinton was retrieved because of the Internet boom that happened under his watch. But that bubble was busted once George W. Bush assumed office. The unemployment numbers that we see now are real, not a vapor. The people out of work are/have been for a while now, well over 6 months. And the truth, there are not enough hard jobs to hire folk in this country. That is the dilemma that Barack Obama faces. There will be no fake economy to save him, like it did with Clinton in the internet boom. What is happening out here is real.

So now, we see the Clinton/Obama show. It is nice, memory lane and all, but that is all it is.

All I can write is this. Barack Obama must be in real trouble to trot out Bill Clinton at this time. No disrespect to the former President, but one has to wonder why at this time and will it work. Will the Democratic base remember how Bill Clinton lost big time in 1994 and had to deal with the Republicans? Will the Democrats line up with Barack Obama and let all this pass? But, will the Independents come home as Barack go to the right? Those are the questions which we will see answered in the months to come.

Personally, I don't think Bill Clinton will make a difference. He was then and Barack Obama is now. That is the difference.

Thursday, December 9, 2010

The reason I am asking it is because the negotiated tax plan from the White House with the Republicans touts it will create jobs.

My thing is this, "The millionaires and billionaires have had this tax cut for 10 years, where are the jobs?"

This is a valid question because does anyone believe that continuing this tax cut will create jobs in this country?

We are knocking on the door of 10% unemployment in this country and I don't see any relief of these numbers, anytime soon. In fact, we need to create over 200K jobs a MONTH to catch up with inflation and the unemployment rate to off set it and we are talking about 200K a month for close to 2 years.

Look, the reality is this; all of this is a set up to marginalize President Obama further, along with the Democrats. If you don't believe it, watch the ratcheting up for the next year from the GOP. Watch about the continued lack of leadership, weakness from this president meme. And the GOP has been stating this about him WAYYYY before Democrats got frustrated and started saying this publicly.

This dog and pony show will continue, it will not slow down or stop. Every time President Obama wants something, he will be forced to cave to the Republican agenda. Pushing these rich folk tax cuts is just kicking the can down the road and empowering, proving the point to the Republicans. The Republicans believe they can defeat Obama in 2012, control the congress again, and make these tax cuts permanent. The Republicans don't believe this economy will turn around anytime soon, the fact of the matter is that we don't have enough jobs to employ folk in this country.

The next act from the Republicans will be the call to PAY FOR THIS SHIT. And guess what they will trot out? Social Security and Medicare cuts. The GOP will continue to whine that these programs will bankrupt this country and must be overhauled. Along with this disastrous meme, will be the reminder to President Obama that he is for "Pay Go". Remember, words do matter and he did say he supported it. This will put President Obama in another box. And you think folks are angry at rich folk tax cuts, watch your Grandmother go off when she witness President Obama state, "..cuts in payment to social security must be done to save this country."

It will be a sham.

Why a sham? Because the Republican Party is the party of spend, spend, and spend. They spent us into the ground under George W. Bush, but spent the money on what they felt is best for themselves and their rich buddies. That is how it went down. When the Democrats came in power, we get shamed on the deficit and it must be under control, programs must be cut. This bullshit is the biggest sham of all because we are spending fake money now to pass this tax cut and if the deficit was so damn important, WE WOULD NOT BE TALKING ABOUT THIS. Personally, I don't know if this tax cut deal will pass or not. But I do know that President Obama will become a mockery if it does.

an international flight attendant reporting on what she overhears from US CEOs on her flights. It's all about opening new factories overseas and buying second homes in the 3rd world country of choice to make it easier to commute.

Another caller in the import business said: Trickle down economics works great to create jobs - JOBS OVERSEAS. The wealthy are investing alright, just not in America.

Screw the president's bill.

That is the real point here (and I heard the same caller on Ed's radio show). Until any President have the fortitude to revamp trade agreements to China, India, Brazil, etc. This argument will continue to go in circles. This country is feeling the affects of a poor NAFTA agreement and bad trade agreements resulting in CEO's of this country opening up their manufacturing plants abroad to the tune of 1.00 an hour for personnel with no benefits. This country can not compete with that and to be brutally honest, it won't change. President Obama can say whatever he wants, but the real banker that we owe is China and those floodgates of their bad gear, food is not going to stop coming into this country anytime soon.

That is the dilemma about jobs in this country and why we will be sitting on high unemployment for a very long time. Tax cuts to the rich are not going to create any jobs and if you believe that, then a cup of reality is much needed.

Well, many are angry at the President for doing this, another broken campaign promise. Oh, and how are we going to pay for this one, since the initial one was never paid for. Next cut, WATCH, Social Security.

First, there was this and that secret deal the White House tried to deny with BIG PHaRMA:

Then, Senator Obama who was campaigning for President of the United States insisted that he does not support any mandates, but caved to the insurance companies that every American must purchase health care insurance. Meaning, giving the insurance companies up to or over 30 million new customers. Some change you can believe in!!

Though in 2008 then-Senator Barack Obama campaigned against requiring adults to buy insurance,[13] in July 2009 President Obama reportedly "changed his mind" and announced that he was "now in favor of some sort of individual mandate as long as there's a hardship exemption."[14] Supporting an individual mandate, Obama said, "I've been persuaded that there are enough young, uninsured people who are cheap to cover, but are opting out. To make sure that those folks are part of the overall pool is the best way to make sure that all of our premiums go down."[15] However, the Congressional Budget Office found that the effect of broadening insurance coverage "would probably be relatively small and would not directly produce net savings in national or federal spending on health care."[16]

Now the main premise of his campaign was repealing the Bush Tax Cuts. In fact, President Obama explained repeatedly that these tax cuts were never paid for and is part of the problem of the deficit. Informing the public that this money will be used for other programs and to help reduce the deficit. Well, the biggest flip/flop of all extending these rich folk tax cuts, along with reducing the estate tax for some of the most richest estates in this country. My question is always this, "there are more poor folk, middle class folk than rich folk..." That is a fact.

Now, the problem with the Obama White House is that they are incompetent when it comes to playing hardball and defending their policies. We saw this through the health care fiasco, financial regulation debate and now these tax cuts. President Obama's first duty should have been working on this economy, which includes getting ready to fight for the repealing of the Bush Tax Cuts and having ready his own tax cut plan. Unemployment Extension should never have been out there for the Republicans to hijack to get what they want. An up and down vote should have come out of congress for JUST EXTENDING UNEMPLOYMENT, a recorded vote for the public to view. The public would have been on the side of continuing the extension, with no games being played. Pressure could mount on incoming House members from the most hard hit states, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Ohio to vote to keep the UI extensions going. This is not hard, but the dysfunctional Democrats in D.C. continues to let it be dysfunctional.

Now, Barack Obama can continue to be thin skinned and have selective memory on much of what he said, but the American Public remembers. The public is not stupid, does anyone think Barack Obama will fight to repeal the Bush Tax Cuts in 2012? After we just saw this flip-flop show from him? He has just allowed the can to be kicked further down the road and the longer it is kicked the more reality that these tax cuts will become permanent.

Lastly, I don't care if the President is angry at members in his own party, he has another issue to deal with. TRUST. You need all those people that brought you to the dance to become re-energized in 2012, right now many are losing trust in anything that you say. When you lose trust it is very hard to get it back. Remember that President Obama, while you are getting upset at the word, "public option".

Sigh, just writing that makes me feel bad, but I deal with reality not fantasy and this is how I see things from the White House along with how I feel.

Extending the current Bush Tax Cuts (the name alone should make many cringe) is one of the most horrible decisions Barack Obama will do.

We have sat and saw this White House repeatedly negotiate many things away before a fight, along with witnessing this White House repeatedly run after the Republicans for votes they never got.

Well, we are witnessing the White House again wave their retrieval flag for the most basic promise of the Obama Campaign, repealing the Bush Tax Cuts.

There are plenty of diaries, blogging, newspaper articles with much discussion about a deal to extend the tax cuts 2-3 years in lieu of keeping the current unemployment extensions in tact.

The reality is that no deal should be cut or should have ever been thought of. With the unemployment rate inching to 9.8% in November, extending the current extensions is a non-brainer. But this White House is gutless and don't know how to fight.

Calling the Republicans scrooges to block any unemployment extension, along with creating a Tier 5 is a good fight to have, why? The people of this country understand this and get it because many know family members, friends in this very dire straight. The people of this country also understand that no tax cuts should be extended for the richest millionaires and billionaires in this country. In fact, if we are negotiating to keep the current unemployment extensions, why not demand a tier 5? Especially with the unemployment number ticking UPWARD not DOWNWARD.

I mean are we going to get ANYTHING OUT OF THIS DEAL? Does this White House know or understand the art of negotiating? Everyone must ask this because the way things are going my outlook on the White House is a bunch of dumb asses who are totally clueless.

Lastly, I agree with the former Reagan Budget Director, David Stockman who was on Countdown with Keith Olbermann, this past Friday. He very directly stated that extending the tax cuts to the richest individuals in this country so they can continue to shop at Tiffany's is damaging. He was not in agreement in 2001 for these tax cuts and is not in agreement now. Stating that Barack Obama should find a veto pen is correct. The argument is and was winnable to extend unemployment benefits, create a tier 5 with the unemployment rate expanding, and allowing the Bush Tax Cuts to expire. But, yet again, we have a White House which is always behind the 8 ball, not knowing how to frame a message and fight, and are a bunch of spineless politicians.

Many of us worked very hard for Barack Obama, but never imagined the continual caves. Sure, some will say they expected it but the majority did not. Fighting for basic democratic principles and moral obligations should not be difficult, but this White House makes it more difficult as the days pass on. And getting tough with Democrats is congress is laughable when you can't even get tough or call out the hypocritical Republicans.

So, in the end of this deal is no deal. We are not getting anything new on the table, but empowering the Republicans that they can punk this White House whenever they want to. And from the looks of it, the Republicans will continue to have it their way.

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